For Real?
by the book lady
Summary: after CoG, A strange kind of demon that is able to bear runes shows up in New York and attacks Jace. Clary starts to think that the demon was sent by someone, and tries to take advantage of her rune powers to defeat it. Clace, Malec, and Simabelle? idk
1. Walk Home

A/N ~ Soooo hey-lo there! This is my second attempt at a MI fic…My first one was just a rewrite of a scene in COG so it couldn't of been that great. I don't know where I got the inspiration for this but it is going somewhere…..however the first chapter might just be pure fluff, I do love good fluff. I definitely will have plenty of Clary/Jace in this, and some Alec/Magnus, those are my favorite pairings…I really can't say who I like Simon with better but I'm leaning towards Isabelle, Maia seems more of a friend person, know what I mean? If you want me to keep writing, tell me in a review, and put who you wanna see Simon with, if you care. I have an idea for the plot, but I don't know if I should go through with it. I guess I'll see how many reviews I get, but TRUST ME, I am NOT going to ask for so many reviews to keep writing, I hate that. I probably am making you really really bored with my endless drabble of meaningless stuff so…

ONWARD WITH THE STORY *cue epic fanfare music* lolz :D

OH! I almost forgot…

Disclaimer: I don't own the Mortal Instruments, the Clave does! teehee. As for the book series…The fabulous Cassandra Clare owns that. If I owned it, would I even be on this website? No, I don't think so.

-XXx..o..xXX-

The words that were about to form on her lips melted away as his thumb came up to caress her cheek.

"Jace…" Clary murmured, unable to say anything more than that. His lips brushed against hers and his grip on her waist tightened as Jace pressed Clary closer to himself. The hand that wasn't already on Clary's face moved up her side so he was cupping her cheeks in his rough, calloused hands with un-matching, slender, pianist fingers. Clary felt like she was going to dissolve, when Jace held her she turned into putty. When he pulled away she almost lost her balance, and Jace smirked at this.

"I've been known to make girls dizzy with my angelic charm, but never have I had someone almost fall over in front of me. If you wish to drop to your knees and worship me I suggest you do it in a more graceful manner, your clumsiness is a disgrace to my amazing good looks." He said with a cocky grin, pressing his forehead to hers, and steadying her with his arms. Clary pulled back from his embrace for a second and slapped him playfully on the arm.

"Way to let your ego ruin the moment Lightwood." Clary tried to sound angry but wasn't capable of it. "Come to think of it, I was enjoying myself before your sarcastic outburst." At this, Jace chuckled. He always found that when Clary tried to be angry she just made herself more adorable. Knowing it would make her blush, he said,

"You know that I think you sound adorable when you try to be angry at me?" And he succeeded. The traitorous flow of red rushed into Clary's cheeks as she turned her face away from Jace.

"I'm not… trying. I really am… angry…" But she wasn't able to form a real sentence. Clary could feel Jace's finger lifting her face up so their gazes met, his soft gold eyes boring into her fierce green ones. Instantly, she cast her eyes down to her feet, but Jace wouldn't have it. Leaning forward, he whispered in her ear,

"You can't possibly be angry at me." His breath was hot and husky on her ear, his lips ever so slightly brushing her ear lobe. Then, he nipped at it, and ran a trail of open mouthed kisses down her neck to her collarbone, then her chin, and finally, her lips. Clary sighed in pleasure and gave into the kiss, moving her arms around Jace's neck for support. His left hand pressed firmly on the small of her back, tracing wide, soft circles there. Clary knotted her hands in the soft golden curls at the nape of his neck and tugged extremely gently on them, pulling a soft moan from the back of Jace's throat. He kissed her harder and ran his tongue along Clary's bottom lip, silently begging for entrance. She let him push her lips apart and savored the taste of Jace's tongue in her mouth. Eventually, they had to break apart to breathe, and when they did Clary buried her face in Jace's shoulder.

"It's not fair," She breathed. "I feel like you do all the work… and I can't do anything to show you how much I love you, how much I need you."

Jace was shocked by this. Clearly, Clary had no idea how strongly he felt about her. By simply letting him do this was enough. Angel, even just being near her was enough. Suddenly, Jace was driven by a new force; one that wanted him to show her just how much he loved her, how badly he needed her. It surely was more than she could ever know, but he had to try. For her, for him, for them. Walking over to his bed in his room at the Institute he sat down and pulled Clary into his lap. Forcing her to look at him he saw the tears forming in her eyes. Wiping them away with his thumb he whispered to her,

"You've already proven your love to me Clary. You could have had anything, anything in the world on that day, and you asked the Angel for me. That is more than you will ever know. You don't have to do anything to prove yourself to me Clary, because you have. You can't seem to know how much you mean to me, I wish there was just some way to show you." Jace released a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding and waited for her response.

"Jace…" was all she said. "That was so… romantic. I don't think I've ever felt more… loved. Do I really… mean that much to you?" It was silly to think she could ever question that, so instead of replying he caught her lips with his in a gentle, yet passionate kiss. When they broke apart Clary glanced at the clock and noticed it was almost 10:30, her curfew.

"Jace, I have to go. If I'm not home Mom and Luke will kill me. I wish I could stay here… imagine what it would be like if I lived at the Institute… We could wake up in each other's arms every day, and train together in the mornings. That would be so great wouldn't it?" In that moment, Jace thought, Clary looked more beautiful than ever. He could see the desire burning in her eyes through her thick eyelashes. The smattering of freckles across the bridge of her nose made her look more adorable and her shock of red hair seemed somehow darker in the low lights of his bedroom. He remembered the first time he had said she was beautiful, on her sixteenth birthday. He had said it as a fact, not a compliment. Now, it was both, not merely a fact but a truth so strong it almost hurt. What did ever do to deserve someone like this? Surely he wasn't worthy of being so happy. Smiling at Clary's words he replied,

"Yes, I think I would love that. It's too bad your parents are so reluctant to let you do anything with me." Jace cast his gaze downward to their entwined hands on Clary's lap. He knew Luke had no problem with him, but Jocelyn was still hesitant towards him. Jace had figured it was because he was brought up by Valentine, and nothing could prove to her, that even though he wasn't Valentine's son by blood, Valentine was still his father. Clary, sensing his sudden discomfort, reassured him that it was okay, and her mom would come around eventually.

They got up from the bed and walked to the kitchen, hand in hand down the hallway. When they got to the kitchen they found Isabelle, looking bored while staring blankly at what looked like a recipe card. Jace cringed in mock disgust and said to Isabelle,

"Please, tell me you aren't planning on trying to cook that?" Isabelle looked up from the counter and swiveled in her chair to face Jace.

"Actually, I was." She replied with a confidant smile on her face. "I've been collecting recipes to get mom to help me with when her and dad get back from Idris." Robert and Maryse had stayed in Idris to help clean up the mess after the war, and to organize the new Clave. They still weren't happy about the way things would be from now on, with having downworlders on the council. Isabelle smirked at Jace's brief look of surprise before he quickly composed his features into yet another tight smirk.

"Izzy, face it. Your cooking cannot be helped. Just give it up." Jace laughed triumphantly before setting his gaze back to Clary. Isabelle scowled and she too, turned her attention to Clary.

"I would say I'm glad to see you Clary, but honestly, I'm not. Whenever you're around Jace acts like a love sick puppy. It's disgusting. You guys do all this gross hand holding and oogly eyes. Seriously? Get a room." By the end of her little rant Clary smiled and said "I love you too Izzy." They almost didn't notice how Jace's smirk had been replaced with a surprised look of horror. He was staring in wide-eyed disbelief at what Isabelle had just said.

"I am NOT a 'love sick puppy' as you put it. And we _had _a room, until we were ever so rudely interrupted by Clary's curfew, so being the gentleman I am, I was going to walk her home."

Izzy just shrugged and giggled at this. "Clary has a curfew? She's like 17. How _lame._" It was true. Clary was now 17. It was a year after they had first met on that fateful night at Pandemonium. Isabelle was also 17, and Jace was turning 18 in a few days. Alec was now 19. Pretty soon, Jace could participate in official Clave meetings with Alec, Robert, Maryse, and Jocelyn. Waving goodbye to Isabelle they turned towards the elevator and rode down in silence. Jace slung his arm around Clary's waist and drew her closer, pressing his lips into her hair. He was ecstatic for his eighteenth birthday. Being eighteen meant that Clary no longer had to be trained by Maryse, Robert, or Alec, and Jace could do it himself, without the necessary supervision. Clary pressed into his side and inhaled his scent of lemons and sunshine. She had so often tried to memorize what he smelled like, but could not succeed. It just felt un-natural, trying to recreate the feeling of what it felt like to be with Jace when he wasn't there, it was so much better when he was. The elevator slowed to a stop and they stepped out into the hallway, and then into the cold, night air of Brooklyn. They walked in silence along the streets, not bothering to hail a cab to get there. The night was peaceful, they could hear the faint whir of traffic in the distance and the streetlights cast tiny pools of light on the street. Only when Jace thought he heard something did he tense, reaching to draw a seraph blade out of his pocket.

"Jace, it's probably nothing. Leave it." Clary whispered into his side, but instead of putting the blade away he drew it out further and barely had a chance to react when two Forsaken leaped out of an alleyway, brandishing horrible spiked clubs and axes. They made a strangled cry of battle and flung themselves at Jace. Clary was so surprised she barely heard Jace call his seraph blade to life.

"_Samandiriel!"_

Clary felt incapable and weak without a weapon of her own to hold, and felt much safer when Jace passed her a dagger. It was small, but it would suffice. Looking over at Jace, who was occupied with his Forsaken she mirrored his actions and flung herself at her own Forsaken. She stabbed it in the shoulder, and turned to look behind her, crying out in horror at what she saw. A kind of demon she had never seen before was looming up behind Jace, with slimy sort of suction cups dotting it's grey, slug-like body with bursts of probably poisonous color. The demon had three sets of arms, if you included the large, leathery wings protruding from its back. The demon had large, gaping holes in its face where its eyes would have been, if it had any.

"Jace!" She screeched, "Behind you!"

Jace whirled around a fraction of a second too late, and one of the demons razor sharp talons from its wings whipped him across the chest, and then toxic ooze squirted out of the suction cups on its arms and legs and filled the cut, mixing in with the blood that had already started to well there. Jace's jaw fell, his mouth agape in horror and surprise. His eyes turned a horrid grey color before his whole body convulsed and his eyes rolled into the back of his head and he dropped to the ground, unconscious. Before Clary had the chance to attack the demon it disappeared, just as suddenly as it had came. Running over to Jace and dropping down at his side she whipped out her cell phone, and with trembling fingers, she dialed Magnus' number.

-XXx..o..xXX-

( clary's house)

"But Luke!" Jocelyn yelled as she glanced at the clock one last time. "It's 10:52! Exactly twenty two minutes past her curfew! She knows better than that. What if she's with Jace? She said she was going to visit the Lightwoods and I let her, forgetting that Jace was a Lightwood, and that with Robert and Maryse gone in Idris they could be doing who knows what without adult supervision!" Luke strode across the living room and wrapped his arms around Jocelyn's waist, rubbing soothing circles in her back in an attempt to calm her. She hesitated, and then wrapped her arms around his neck.

"It's okay Jocelyn." Luke said in a whisper, "Clary isn't irresponsible, and neither is Jace. Have more trust in them. I'm sure they just got caught in traffic or something on the way home. You do know that the Institute is a little further from our house than Simon's house is. It will take her longer to get home. It's fine." Jocelyn lowered her head to rest on Luke's shoulder as she sighed.

"I suppose you're right. Can we at least call her?" Jocelyn asked, looking at Luke once again. Luke detached himself from Jocelyn and grabbed his cell phone off the counter. On the third ring, it went to Clary's voicemail. Jocelyn sighed in frustration and turned to face Luke.

"She didn't answer. I don't know who else to call, I don't have any of the other Lightwood's numbers."

Luke had a thoughtful expression on his face before saying, "You could try Magnus."

Jocelyn was puzzled by this.

"What?"

"Well, since Magnus and Alec are, um, dating then maybe he's with them, and maybe Alec knows where Clary is." Luke explained. Jocelyn realized that this could possibly work and she punched in Magnus' number.

-XXx..o..xXX-

(prior to the attack, magnus' house)

Alec moaned as Magnus dug his fingers into his shoulders, bringing him, if possible, even closer. Alec kissed him even harder and ran his fingers through Magnus' hair, which was, not gelled up and glitterified as it normally was. Alec liked when Magnus wore no makeup, it brought out how beautiful he was naturally, and he didn't get glitter all over his hands when he ran his fingers through his hair. Magnus slid his hands down Alec's back and gripped his hips, grinding them together. At this, Alec growled and tugged harder on Magnus' soft, smoky black hair. Alec moved his hands and splayed his fingers across the back of Magnus' neck, then he yanked at Magnus' vest and threw it off, leaving a sparkly, tie-dyed v-neck t-shirt underneath. Magnus fisted his hands in the material of Alec's old, worn out sweater and pulled it over Alec's head. Alec instantly froze in his spot. He wasn't sure if he was comfortable with this. The blush crept into his cheeks and he shied away from Magnus' questioning and sympathetic gaze.

"It's okay Alec," Magnus reassured him. "You can put your shirt back on. I'm sorry, if I knew you were uncomfortable I would have never done that."

"I guess it's just that, you're so perfect Magnus, and I'm afraid you'll think I'm ugly, because I could never be as beautiful as you are." Alec replied, his voice wavering. Magnus used a single finger to lift Alec's chin up so they were looking straight at each other.

"Alec, you could never not be beautiful, I think you're perfect in every way imaginable Alec." Magnus looked at him, and by the sincerity in his gaze Alec could tell that he meant everything he had just said. This was exactly why Alec felt so safe and _right_ with Magnus. He made him feel special and perfect and _loved. _Magnus traced his fingers across one of the permanent runes on his chest and purred, **(A/N kinda…yea I said purred, it's just so…magnus) **

"Besides… I like it when I can trace over your marks little Shadowhunter…" They were about to kiss again when Magnus' work phone rung loudly and obnoxiously, breaking apart their moment. Magnus hastily got up off the couch and walked over to the kitchen, picking up the phone and snapping a hello into the receiver. From the other side of the room Alec could hear Magnus' half of the conversation and wondered who he could be talking to. He heard a 'No, why would I know where she's at?' and then his cell phone rang. Magnus told the person on the work phone to hold on and answered his cell. When the caller replied his face fell, and he turned back to the work phone. Alec thought he heard him say 'It's Clary, Jace is hurt.' But Alec wasn't sure. Magnus said something about the Institute into the cell phone and then he set both phones on the counter and looked at Alec. All he said was,

"It's Jace."

-XXx..o..xxX-

Within ten minutes they were back at the Institute and standing in the infirmary, with Clary and Isabelle, all huddled over the bed that Jace's unconscious form lay sprawled in. Clary began to say in a frantic voice,

"I tried an _iratze _right above the wound but it did nothing. Luckily we weren't far from the Institute, I was able to run back to get Isabelle and we carried Jace here. The demon… it was like nothing I've ever seen before. I just… the Forsaken… they were meant to distract us… if I would have called out sooner…" and that's when she started crying.

In the bed Jace lie shirtless, a large gash running across his torso. His normally tan chest was a deathly pale under the white light of the infirmary, and his marks stood out like ink spilled on paper. His face was pale and cold from the loss of blood, and his eyelids looked grey as they twitched. Perhaps he was dreaming, or he could hear what they were saying, but Clary didn't know.At the edge of her mind, she could hear Magnus instructing everyone to leave the room, but she couldn't. After the door clicked shut Magnus turned to her and whispered,

"You can stay. I know how it feels." Clary only nodded and watched as Magnus set to work, blue sparks erupting from his fingertips. The shimmer of the sparks caused a strange array of green-golds to dance across Jace's blonde curls. Even when Jace was injured, and probably in the highest level of pain, he looked peaceful. His blonde mop of curls was a disheveled halo of gold, his face composed of a soft smile in his unconscious state, instead of his usual smirk or cocky grin. Clary sighed when she realized how tired she was. Soon enough, she was nodding off to sleep in her chair.

A/N Soooo how'd ya like it? Was it super awesome? I thought I did good. It's actually really easy to write Alec and Magnus… I thought it would be harder. So yea maybe I lied a little when I said this chapter would just be pointless fluff. But I got a good amount of fluff, action, and angst! That is really hard to do. Anyways… I'm proud of myself sooooo pleeezzz pleeezzz pleeezzz review! I wanna know what you think. I already have an idea for the next chapter and imma gonna start typing right after I post this Soooo maybe since I'm sick and have nothing better to do you'll see chapter two within one or two days… maybe tonight if I stay up super late. Remember… Reviews are like frozen chocolate covered bananas… they're healthy for your pride and they taste super yummy…. :DDDD


	2. Your Hair's Wet

A/N: Hello my lovelies! How have you been? So my new word of the day, or night is CINNAMONISH! My friend Yoshiko and I came up with that last year and I just thought of it soo….yea. You probably don't care. Or you didn't even bother reading the author's note cuz they're boring. Whatevs. But hey, if you skip the A/Ns then too bad for you cause you miss out on my uber awesome monologue! Teehee. So this is what I'm gonna do if I hit ten reviews… I will randomly flail my arms in the air and yell 'holy crap!' Inside joke. Sooo here's the disclaimer; I think it's funny this time.

ME: I don't own any of the characters or ideas… except maybe Jace.

CASSANDRA CLARE: What? You can't steal Jace! Clary isn't going to be happy with you.

CLARY: Hey! Who said you could have my boyfriend? Jace! Tell her you're taken!

JACE: It's so hot when girls fight over me.

CLARY: Jace! You aren't helping! Tell her you're TAKEN.

ME: Yea, tell me you're taken, or are you?

CLARY: You stupid mundie! Jace, do something.

JACE: I don't think I will, instead, I'm going to go get some food at Taki's, want anything?

ME: Can I come?

CLARY: No.

CASSANDRA CLARE: Stop fighting. Just write the story.

ME: Fine…

Now to proceed onward with my epic story…

Clary awoke with a sigh as she felt a warm hand caress her cheek. Her heavy eyelids fluttered open and she took in the scene around her. Clary was in the infirmary, she noticed, and the warm touch had come from Jace. Jace. Her heart leapt forward in her chest. Jace was okay!

"Hello there sleeping beauty." Jace murmured as he held his arms out, motioning for her to come stand in his embrace. Clary complied, letting herself melt into his arms. Gone was the pale, injured Jace and here was her warm, loving, and much more awake Jace. He still smelled of lemons and sunshine, despite last night's events. That was when Clary realized that his hair was soaking wet, barely towel dried. Nuzzling her nose into his shoulder she breathed,

"Your hair's wet." She could feel the rumble in Jace's chest as he chuckled at this.

"You know," He began, his tone layered with thick sarcasm, "After my near death situation, I had imagined that when I woke up the first thing you would say would be something like," he hesitated, as if pausing to think. Clary knew however, it was just to be dramatic. "Oh Jace," He started again in a high, girlish tone.

"That is _not _how I talk!" Clary said, trying to prevent a giggle from escaping her lips. Despite her outburst, Jace continued.

"Oh, I thought I _lost _you _forever!" _He paused, and said in a normal voice, "Or something like," and then returning to his 'mock Clary' voice he said "Jace! Oh thank the Angel Jace! You're okay!" Then, for dramatic effect he sighed and said in his regular voice, "But no. All I get is a 'your hair's wet.' Thanks Clary. It's nice to know I'm loved"

At this, Clary giggled a very high pitched, girlish giggle. She didn't even know she was capable of making such a sound.

"I just thought, it was funny." She looked up at Jace and saw that the soft look in his eyes did not match the sarcasm in his tone. Instead, his eyes were filled with love and happiness.

"Would it be funny," Jace inquired, "If I did this?" And then he did something Clary thought that Jace would never, ever do. Ever.

He. Shook. The. Water. Out. Of. His. Hair. All over Clary. She screeched in surprise at the sudden splash of cold across her face and shoulders.

"JACE!" Clary moved to slap his arm, but he caught her wrist in his hand and pinned it to the wall behind her as he crashed his lips to hers. Their bodies pressed against each other and heat spread through her veins everywhere they touched. It was at that moment that the door to the infirmary chose to crash open to reveal a very shocked, ticked off looking Jocelyn standing in the doorway. She cleared her throat loudly and Jace sprang back from Clary, tucking his hands in his pockets. Clary felt the rush of heat spread to her cheeks as she cast her gaze downward in order to avoid hers mom's angry one.

"Clary, can you tell me why you didn't come home last night?" Jocelyn was scary calm, like really freaky. _Shoot. I fell asleep at the Institute. That can't be very good. Surely Jocelyn knew about the demon attack, Magnus had said he was on the phone with her last night. That didn't explain why… oh. No one had told Jocelyn she fell asleep in a chair in the infirmary, while Jace, was still unconscious. _This was going to take a lot of explaining.

"Um, yea, I can. Magnus said you knew about the demon thing last night right? Well he came to the Institute to heal Jace. I was sitting in the infirmary and I kind of fell asleep. Jace like just woke me up fifteen minutes ago, I swear." Clary ran through her explanation so fast it almost sounded like a mumble jumble of murmurs.

"On the Angel?" From Jocelyn's defensive stance and strict tone showed that there was no way she was kidding.

"Yea mom. I wouldn't lie to you. You're taking this way too seriously; Jace could have _died _last night." Finally raising her eyes to look at her mom she saw how beneath her anger there was a lot of worry and anxiety.

"I know." Jocelyn's bottom lip quivered, and in a whisper she added, "You both could of." There was a really awkward silence and Jace, always one to be sarcastic said,

"You know, for every awkward silence a gay baby is born." Then, Magnus walked into the room.

"What about gay babies?" he asked, completely unaware of the little mother daughter argument that was going on before. "Jace, I got rid of the poison, or most of it. We had no way of knowing what kind of demon it was. Since Clary just woke up we were hoping she could describe it so we could search it in the library. Clary?"

"Well, if I remember right, it was like a slug with wings. The whole thing was grey, except for these suction cup things that were all over its body, dotting it with color. The edges of the wings had these razor sharp talons on them, which was how Jace got cut. And then this horrible goo spurted out of the suction cups and it filled the wound, stopping the blood flow. The wings were like leather and the whole thing was covered in this transparent slime. I've never seen a demon like it. The wings reminded me of those bird demons on Valentine's demon boat, but it had the body of a Drevak demon. I think it summoned the Forsaken to distract Jace and me while it came up from behind us. The thing was," Clary paused to take a breath, "It only attacked Jace, and then it disappeared before I could try to kill it." By the time she was done with her explanation the room had fell completely silent and they all looked slightly shaken at the mention of Valentine's demon boat. Alec, who had only recently come into the room, had a thoughtful expression on his face.

"Did you notice anything strange about the demon's wings, or any other part of its body? Did the demon glamour itself at first, or did it just appear as a demon right away? I think I might know something that could help if you can tell me that it looked like it had runes on its wings." Alec explained, staring intently at Clary, waiting for a response. Clary tried to scan her memory. What kind of demon could have runes, and how would anyone get close enough to mark it? She tried to replay the scene over and over in her mind until something stood out. She looked one last time at the demons wings, face, and body when she realized something. The transparent goo that coated the demon's torso was shimmering, made up of a layer of opaque marks. Shadowhunter marks. How had those gotten there?

"Yes, actually, it did. The transparent goo, if I remember right, was actually an opaque layer of runes. They shimmered. I don't know how I could have forgotten. But why were they there?" After a moment Alec replied,

"A few months after the second uprising I went to my first official Clave meeting, and they were discussing a new issue that had popped up, and could very well be a big problem. There is evidence that someone, a Shadowhunter or a Downworlder we aren't sure yet, is making cross breed demons, and controlling them with a cloak of binding runes. From your description Clary, it seems that this could be one of them."

That was when Jace spoke for the first time since the comment about gay babies, "So if the demon was controlled by binding runes, that means someone is out to get me, right?" Clary was stunned by this. The attack had seemed like it was planned, but she really hated the idea of someone after Jace. Even though he acted all tough and invincible, Clary had seen him _die _and there was no saying it couldn't happen again. Without realizing it she actually trembled, and Jace pulled her into the protective circle of his arms, the only place where Clary ever truly felt safe.

Breaking the moment, Alec said, "Quite possibly. Mom and dad said I wasn't supposed to mention this to you because it's official Clave business and none of you are old enough, except Jace almost is, but I think this could have something to do with why or how Jace was attacked."

The room was filled with obvious tension and thought at the time, everyone immersed in their own ideas. Finally, Clary spoke up.

"It's too bad that there are no more Silent Brothers in New York, I think they could have helped us with this."

Jace's face twisted into a grimace at the memory. None of the events last year had been very pleasant for him, except the kiss in the Seelie Court and finding out that he and Clary weren't actually siblings.

"Since mom and dad are in Idris right now, there's Silent Brothers there. I can try to send a fire message to them and they can ask for us." Alec replied to Clary. The room fell silent and Alec turned to go to the library. Magnus turned to the rest of the group and said,

"I would love to grace you with my presence longer, but I feel that my boyfriend is more needing of it." Everyone noticed how Alec stiffened in the door way, his face was probably a furious shade of red. Then Alec continued on as if Magnus hadn't said anything. Jace chuckled at this and whispered something into Clary's hair that made her giggle. Clearly they were too preoccupied with each other to remember that Jocelyn was still in the room. Jocelyn decided to leave and let Clary spend some time with Jace. If she brought Clary home now Luke would have a fit on how over protective she is.

Isabelle Lightwood was _alone. _She had known that Jace was attacked last night and she knew about the discussion in the infirmary, but she didn't feel like going. Instead, she felt like training. She wanted to slash out at one of the dummies with her whip and feel the satisfaction of the electrum chord cutting through the cloth and straw. Why was she so angry? Because it had been a year since the second uprising, a year since she met Clary and her silly mundane friend, and a year since she realized that she, Isabelle Lightwood, was in love with the most _mundane _vampire in the world. Simon. She had thrown herself at him countless times, trying to make her feelings for him obvious, but he didn't get it. He probably thought he was just another boy-toy. But that wasn't how Isabelle felt about him. She really didn't know how to go about this. Normally, she could have any boy she wanted, and dispose of him as soon as she was done, but she was never in love before. She never wanted anybody this badly. Throwing her hair into a pony tail and coiling her whip around her wrist she headed down the hall to the training room. Never before had she actually gotten angry about Simon, but last night she popped. Seeing Clary with Jace made her jealous. Not that she wanted to be with Jace, oh Angel no. She was jealous of what they had, and she definitely wanted that with none other than the nerdy, awkward, mundie vamp. Yea, so not her type. Yet for some reason, she was drawn to him. She looked at the dummy she had set out on the mat and a new name came into her mind.

_Maia. _

Sure Maia was nice, and she had helped them countless times, but she was also competition for her. No doubt Simon had feelings for the both of them, but who did he feel for stronger? With a slash and a flash of light she uncoiled the whip in one fluid motion and struck out at the dummy, leaving a large gash in its side. Shreds of straw burst from the cut as she lunged again, this time cutting across its chest, then its back. After a few more slashes and a whirling frenzy of gold light the dummy was in shreds of cloth and straw, lying in a heap on the mat. Izzy sighed and went to the kitchen to get a drink, not bothering to clean up her dummy. Later she would get a shower and sit alone in her room, on a Saturday night. How pathetic.

Everyone had left the infirmary, and Clary and Jace were now alone. Breaking away from his embrace, Clary looked up at Jace with eyes full of worry.

"What are we going to do? Jace, there's something after you, and no matter what you like to believe you _aren't _invincible. I don't know what I'd do if I lost you." Jace stared at her intently and released a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding.

"We are going to find out more about the demon, and then we'll kill it. Simple as that." There was a wicked glint in his eyes as he said it, showing that he couldn't wait to get his hands on the demon that attacked them. He smiled an almost evil smile, showing his perfect white teeth, except for the one with the chip in it.

"Jace, what if this is a bigger problem than we thought. You aren't taking this seriously enough."

"Since when do I ever take things seriously?"

"Since never." Clary sighed, knowing that Jace would win their argument and deciding to leave it at that.

A/N Okay so it was shorter than last chapter, and I didn't get it up on Saturday like I promised but I got distracted. I was reading this book called Need by Carrie Jones and it's like really good. So you know a little more about this demon thingy. Sorry there wasn't much of anything in this chapter but it was more of a transition and it was necessary sooo… let me know what you want more of…Fluff? Angst? Action? There will be plenty of angst in this story. I have a really good idea that involves a super romantic ending… But to get it you know what you have to do… Yellow just so happens to be my favorite color and reviews just so happen to be one of my favorite things… So push the button that's my favorite color and give me one of my favorite things… REVIEW! I love you guys! –Da Book Lady


	3. Cucumbers and Bergamot

A/N So I'm done procrastinating, although I don't think anyone read that story anyway, it's called Defying Gravity. The only reason I'm updating is cuz we have a snow day today and I'm waiting until my friend gets here. I know I haven't updated in like forever but I have four reviews now and that's enough motivation for me. If you're gonna review then please give some kind of suggestion or constructive criticism, I would reallyreallyreally love that. So… Chapter Three, right. Oh and I apologize for chapter two, none of my page breaks showed up for some reason.

Disclaimer: If I owned the Mortal Instruments would I even be on this site? No. Hey did you know that Cassandra Clare isn't allowed to read any of the stuff people write for her books? It's like illegal. How strange…

OOoo…ooOO

(in idris)

"Robert, come look at this." Maryse called after she read the fire message from her son.

"Coming." He replied and made his way towards the table where Maryse was sitting. She looked really frazzled for some reason, and the message could have been the reason for her stress. Looking over her shoulder he read:

_Hey Mom and Dad, its Alec. This is really urgent and I was hoping you could tell me something. Yesterday Jace and Clary were attacked by a demon, and we think it was one of the ones we discussed at the last Clave meeting. Clary wasn't hurt, only Jace, but Magnus took care of that. Clary said the demon had two Forsaken with it, and it was almost like a distraction. She said the demon was like a slug with wings. It had two sets of arms and razor sharp talons on the ends of its wings. All over its body were these suction cup things that spurted poison into Jace's cut. We have no way of identifying the poison and Magnus was able to get rid of most of it but there's some pretty far in Jace's system and we don't know what side effects there could be. Clary said the demon was covered in an opaque veil of runes that sort of created slime on the thing's skin. There are no more Silent Brothers in New York but I think there's some in Idris, right? We think that they might be able to find out what kind of demon this is, and completely cure Jace. The thing is, Clary said the demon left right after it attacked Jace, it didn't even advance on her. We think there might be someone after Jace, and we're all really worried. Love you,_

_Alec._

Robert froze when he was done reading the letter and thought about the situation. Was this new kind of demon really a problem? There were some things that Alec hadn't been told that had been discussed after the meeting, they were for mature adult ears only, and they didn't want the other children at the Institute to hear it yet and surely, Alec would mention it if it was important. The demons were thought to be a cross between a fallen angel and a demon or a downworlder, but the downworlder-fallen angels weren't the problem. There were angels, nephilim, and fallen angels. Fallen angels are angels who have had their wings ripped out after committing an unforgivable act of crime, like falling in love with a human, summoning a demon, or traveling out of the angel dimension without permission. These fallen angels had their own kinds of marks, and if a demon had fallen angel blood, they could bear these marks. Someone was creating an army of angel-demons, and the fallen angels were evil, when their wings were ripped out so were their abilities to be good. This information was vital to the situation, they needed to tell Alec.

OOoo…ooOO

(at the institute again, alec and magnus)

"Do you think they got the message?" Alec asked Magnus for the hundredth time.

"Oh darling, quit worrying, I'm sure they got it, it does take some time to read it and reply." Magnus reassured Alec for the hundredth time. This was how it had been for the past ten minutes, Alec worrying and Magnus reassuring. Alec hadn't been able to find anything helpful in the library, and he was relying on whatever information his parents sent. He had begun nervously tapping his fingers on the desk and it was driving Magnus insane.

"Would you quit it? It you don't stop tapping your fingers I'm going to zap that desk to a foreign country of some sort. Would you like that?" Magnus snapped at Alec, who looked at him like the outburst was totally uncalled for. "Sorry Alec." Magnus added quickly, after seeing the look in Alec's eyes.

"For what?" Alec laughed and Magnus realized he had never actually been mad at him for snapping at him. Laughing at his own stupidity, the mood in the room lightened. With a flash, a folded piece of paper appeared in the center of the table. Alec reached for it and unfolded it, beginning to read.

OOoo…ooOO

(simon)

It seemed strange, a year after he met the Lightwoods, walking around the city. Simon had gone back to high school like a normal human being, except he was anything but that. Being mentally 17 and physically 16 was strange. He had graduated from high school a month ago in June, but the ceremony was not all that exciting. Clary was not there as a graduate because instead of returning to high school she was trained at the Institute by Alec and Jace. All of his senior year girls had thrown themselves at Simon, a result of his vampire looks. He hadn't paid notice to any of them though, his mind was only on one girl, and it wasn't Clary anymore. Now a new name was burned into his mind. Isabelle. There wasn't really anything for him to do today to get her off his mind, Clary hadn't called in a day and he couldn't reach her phone. Simon had tired of playing Dungeons and Dragons now that he had gotten to experience it all first hand, it all seemed so fake and immature now. He hadn't told any of his band friends about the whole undead thing, he seemed sort of stuck in time, more so than normal. He hadn't told anyone really. As a joke, Clary had gotten him some 'Coming out to Your Parents' pamphlets and her laughed and said 'I think being undead is on a whole different spectrum from being gay.' Secretly, he had stashed the pamphlets under his mattress, for when they could be used because he had to face it, sooner or later someone would notice he wasn't aging. He was lucky to have gotten by for a year without anyone finding out. That was the least of his worries for now though. The Mark of Cain on his forehead hadn't determined his fate yet, and Simon wasn't eager to figure out what that was. He wondered briefly what Isabelle was doing, and pushed the thought aside. He wasn't good enough for her.

OOoo…ooOO

(jace and clary)

The bed in the infirmary was not very comfortable, and much less so with two people on it. The only way they fit was with Clary on her back and jace on his side, leaning over her. He was idly playing with a loose strand of her hair as she babbled on about something he wasn't paying attention to.

"Jace?" Clary's voice was questioning as she looked up into his eyes. She must of asked him a question of some sort because she looked like she wanted an answer.

"Yes?"

"You aren't even paying attention to what I'm saying are you?"

"Nope."

"Jace." She sighed and turned to face him more. "You know I hate when you do that?"

"Do what?" He grinned, a wicked glint in his eyes.

"When you-" and she was cut off by his lips on hers. Just as quickly as he had kissed her he pulled away, and clary stuck out her bottom lip to pout.

"No fair! You can't just kiss me to shut me up and then-" and again, he silenced her with a kiss.

"I think I can." His grin grew into a smirk and the wicked glint traveled eyes across the rest of his features. Clary couldn't help but admire the angular sharpness of his cheekbones or the slight chip in one of his teeth. In her frustration her face flushed a furious red and she furrowed her eyebrows, giving Jace what she hoped to be intimidating, glare. An idea popped into her mind and she decided to try it.

"Elaborate." She said, waiting for him to give her some reason about how he can do whatever he wants and she'll still love him.

"Well for one thing, I'm used to everything revolving around me, so I can-" and she pressed her lips to his before he could finish the sentence. Instead of being shocked like she had hoped him to be he wrapped his arm around her waist and cupped her neck, not allowing Clary to pull away right away like she had planned. When he finally let her break the kiss Clary gasped and tugged on his hair.

"You! You knew what I was going to do, didn't you? I can't believe you!" Jace cringed at having his hair tugged and looked at her incredulously.

"You're saying that you don't enjoy kissing me, or am I just a bad kisser? Does my breath smell? I could brush my teeth if you want."

"Your breath doesn't smell, where'd you get that idea?" Clary asked, giving him a funny look.

"So you do want to kiss me?"

"Jace! You are being impossible! I'm trying to talk to you and you weren't even paying attention to me."

"You never objected to wanting to kiss me." Before Clary could say anything his mouth was on hers and she didn't want to object anymore. Running her hands up his arms they rested on his shoulders and made their way to his neck where her fingers toyed with his hair. It was long again, he hadn't cut it in a few months. Clary liked it better when Jace's hair was long, it was more fun to run her fingers through. Jace was tracing his fingers delicately up and down her arms and waist, ghosting over her pale skin. When they broke apart for air Clary said,

"You're lucky I can't stay upset with you." Jace chuckled and rolled off of her, stepping away from the bed and glancing at the clock. It was only 1:43 and they had the rest of the day to do whatever. Clary glanced down at herself and realized she was still dressed in her jeans and tank top from yesterday.

"Jace, will you walk with me to my house, I need to change clothes, and then we can come back here and see if Alec found anything after talking to your guys' parents." She said, gathering her jacket from the chair in the corner where she had fallen asleep last night. Jace grinned evilly at her and said,

"Do you need help getting changed?" Clary blushed furiously at this and cast her eyes down to her feet. Choosing to ignore him she walked out of the infirmary and yelled over her shoulder "You coming?" She heard the shuffling of feet and soon enough Jace was at her side and they were on their way down the elevator, his arm slung casually over her shoulders.

When they exited the Institute Clary realized that today was a lot warmer than yesterday, and it actually felt like summer. Not wanting to walk in the heat, Jace and Clary hailed a cab and were at Clary's house actually pretty quickly for New York. The screen door to Luke's bookstore/apartment rattled as she pulled it open and walked into the comfortably air conditioned living room. Jocelyn was in the kitchen putting together some sandwiches and Luke was nowhere to be seen.

"Hey Mom, where's Luke?" Clary asked, throwing her bag on an armchair and walking to the kitchen, leaving Jace standing by the door.

"Right here." A voice came from the entrance to the bookstore and Luke appeared carrying a stack of dusty, leather bound books that Clary had never seen in the store before. "Hey Clary, Jace."

Luke set the books down on the tiny, two person table in the kitchen, and a cloud of dust erupted from the surface of the covers. Jace made his way into the kitchen by Clary and picked up one of the volumes, eyeing it thoughtfully.

"This is an old Shadowhunter reference book, what's it for?" He asked, turning to face Luke.

"Jocelyn told me about what went on last night and I think there might be some helpful information in these. I know they're old but a long time ago they had a similar problem, but it's not in any of the recent copies of _The Codex, _there's probably something on that demon in here." Luke replied, looking at the books, then at Jace.

"Thanks Luke." Jace said, and they started talking with each other. Clary smiled to herself and slipped down the hall to get changed. She decided on some worn out jean shorts with frayed edges and a purple v-neck t-shirt. Shoving her cell phone into her pocket and grabbing some sour apple chapstick she left her room and went back into the kitchen. Seeing that Jocelyn had made enough sandwiches for everybody, and that Jace and Luke had already started eating she grabbed a plate and sat on the counter for the lack of seating. She was glad her mom hadn't made cucumber sandwiches; Jace would have thrown a fit. Clary smiled at the memory, and how if there were two things Jace hated it was cucumber and bergamot, which apparently, was in Earl Grey tea.

"What are you smiling at?" Jocelyn asked her and Clary blushed like an idiot when she realized she had been smiling. Clary turned to look at Jace and said,

"I was remembering how Jace hates cucumbers, and I thought how funny it would have been if his sandwich had cucumber on it, he probably would have thrown one of his hissy fits."

Jace glared at her, "I do _not _throw 'hissy fits'." After his remark everyone in the room burst out laughing and Jace sat there, red faced, with a priceless glare. His expression was a mix of that of a five year old being denied his favorite toy, and that of a teenage girl, trying to decide whether to slap you, or storm off crying. He folded his arms across his chest and leaned back in his chair, not sure what to do at the moment. They ate in silence, not wanting to make Jace angry. When everyone was done Clary said goodbye to her parents and she and Jace headed back to the Institute with Luke's books.

OOoo…ooOO

(at the institute, alec and magnus)

Alec was really excited after reading his parents reply. There was hope yet for Jace and finding out what kind of demon/fallen angel thing that was. There were a few complications, and Alec began writing his next letter when the door to the library opened and Jace and Clary walked in. They sat down opposite him and Magnus and shoved a large stack of books on the table.

"Why must you bring those near me?" Magnus asked Jace, irritation showing in his voice. "The dust is clogging up my pores. What are they anyway?"

"Books." Jace replied, and shifted his gaze to Alec, who just got a new fire message and was grinning like crazy. "What is it Alec?"

"We're going to Idris."

A/N Soooo how was it? Are you excited? We're going to Idris! I don't really know how many chapters there will be in this fic, it depends on how long it takes for the plot to thicken. Do me a favor… REVIEW!

-Da Book Lady


	4. Kinda

A/N You guys are in luck! We had two snow days in a row and I feel like trying to update. Well last chapter was my favorite cuz we get to go to Idris! I am so excited to write Idris, I love all the detail. I have several ideas and I really want the first one to work, but I don't know if it will. I'm not going for the whole 'Jonathan never died!' or 'Valentine's back from the dead', and I've even seen people who make Sebastian (the real one) alive and evil. I have something much more unexpected. I bet you'll never guess who! Hahahaha! Just so you know I think I deserve a thank you because I started writing the last chapter on my math notes on Monday and my teacher yelled at me and _almost _read it to the class. Who does that? It would have been terribly embarrassing; nobody at my school appreciates the wonders of FanFiction, or the Mortal Instruments. Except me and a few of my friends, who aren't in my math class. How sad. Fortunately, my friend Skylark saved me and said I was paying attention, I already had the work done, and under the desk she slipped me a loose leaf sheet of paper with the work on it, when I showed it to the teacher she left. Thank the Angel. So, lucky for you she didn't take that paper away. Here's a warning, this chapter jumps around a lot with the order of events so it is critical to your understanding to read the parentheses below the page breaks! You will be really confused if you don't.

Disclaimer: I have a plan, if I can get Cassandra Clare to sign some sort of document that gives me all the rights to The Mortal Instruments at one of her book signings then the series will be MINE! Muahahaha! Who am I kidding, it will never work.

A quick thank you to the four people who reviewed: twilightluvergurl, fangirl18, hawaiiangrl, and anonymous. You are super awesome.

ONWARD!

(isabelle and clary, about a week earlier)

"Hey Clary, can I ask you something?" Isabelle asked as she rifled through the racks of clothes in the store while Clary stood with a defiant glare plastered over her face. Isabelle had dragged her shopping, saying that her wardrobe needed fixing. Clary thought her wardrobe was fine, although it wasn't much of a wardrobe.

"Yes Isabelle?" Clary asked, not breaking her defensive stance.

"It's about…Simon." Her voice trailed off as she mentioned him. All year she had pondered how to get Simon to notice that he is not just another boy toy, and that she wants something more with him, a real relationship.

"Simon?" Clary asked, confused.

"Yea, I think… I think I'm in love with him. How do you know?"

"It's like… How do you want me to explain this Isabelle?" Clary asks, her face screwed up in thought. "You just know. Your heart flutters when he's around and sometimes it's so easy to talk but when words are the most important they seem to fall away, and you feel like you and him are the only people in the world when you touch, even if it's just holding hands. That's what it was like for me with Jace, even when we thought we were siblings. That was how I knew. But then it's not really even knowing, it's just something you _feel. _Like you can't control it." She explained, and sighed with satisfaction at her attempt to explain being in love.

"You sound so smart Clary. It's just, Simon probably hates me, or thinks he's just another boy toy of mine but he's _not _and I don't want him to be." Isabelle held up a green top and a white jean skirt and shoved the outfit at Clary, "Dressing room, now." They walked over to the dressing rooms with the outfit and several others Isabelle had picked out for her and Clary huffed in disgust at all the clothes she was carrying.

"Why would Simon hate you?" Clary asked through the linoleum wall of the stall.

"Well I like threw myself at him a thousand times last year and all year while he was in school I didn't even talk to him, except when he was with you and you were with us. So he probably hates me, or thinks that I'm done with him. I really hate being this kind of person Clary, I've only ever done this to make myself seem stronger, and I failed. Are you done yet?" Isabelle replied and got ready for Clary to show her the outfit. She had picked the perfect summer wardrobe with an assortment of short skirts and low cut tank tops specifically chosen to drive Jace insane. Clary stepped out of the stall, wearing a dark wash pair of jean shorts and a light blue spaghetti strap top with a sequined pattern across the hem.

"Is this even supposed to be comfortable? It's so tight, and the shorts seem way too short. Isabelle, what are you trying to do to me? And Simon doesn't hate you. If you want my help then I can try to give Simon a little… motivation, but he won't make the first move, I can guarantee that. Simon's different. And he tells me everything. He wants you, he just isn't sure how to go about it. You have a very similar problem, if you'd get over it you could be together." Clary did a 360 spin and put her hands on her hips and looked at Isabelle questioningly. "Did Jace want me to wear stuff like this, is that why you randomly decided to take me shopping?"

"Never Clary." Isabelle said. Jace hadn't told her to do anything, this was Isabelle's early birthday present for him. "Do you really think Simon wants me? What about Maia?"

"Maia is just Simon's friend Isabelle, quit worrying, and I really can't believe you are asking _me _for advice on your relationships. Just call Simon, sometime soon. You'll be glad you did." Clary turned and went back into the stall and Isabelle sat there, thinking.

(right after simon thought about what isabelle was doing in the last chapter)

Isabelle sat in her room at the Institute and thought about what Clary had said last week. She hadn't listened to her, yet. Isabelle wasn't sure if she wanted to call Simon, but sitting here wasn't going to fix anything either. Hesitantly at first, she punched in Simon's number on her cell phone. After the third ring he picked up.

"Hello?" The voice on the other end of the receiver said.

"Hi Simon." Isabelle said.

"Isabelle?" He asked. Isabelle bit her tongue. What should she say?

"I was just wondering, did you want to come with me to Taki's? I have something I want to talk about." Did that sound okay?

"Um, sure. I'll see you in like, ten minutes then. Bye Isabelle." Simon replied and hung up the phone. _Was Isabelle asking him out on a date? Was that what this was? What could she want to talk about_? Simon wondered as he pulled on a pair of converse and walked out the door. When he got there he spotted Isabelle in a booth in the corner and made his way over to sit with her.

"Hey Isabelle." He greeted, trying to sound casual. He hadn't seen her in a while, not without the rest of the Lightwoods or Clary. "So, what did you want to talk about?"

"Us."

That was not the answer he was expecting. What should he say?

"Uh, okay. What about us?"

Isabelle lost her words. Did she talk to him about it? Did she explain everything she has been feeling for a really long time now?

"Let's get out of here, go on a walk. I'm not really hungry anyway." She said instead, putting off talking about things. When they were out of Taki's they turned down the street towards Central Park and started walking side by side.

"Look Isabelle," Simon began and stopped. Isabelle, not knowing what else to do leaned forward and kissed him, right there, on the mouth. Simon gasped and placed his arms around Isabelle's waist. Isabelle left the kiss at that, keeping it chaste.

"I didn't know how to say that with words, but I've been wanting to for a long time." She said, smiling at Simon who clearly, reciprocated her feelings. Why had she been so nervous?

"One thing," Simon said with an intense look in his eyes. "I'm not…"

"Just another boy toy?" She finished for him. They laughed together and Isabelle said "No. Never." Simon's hands came up to cup her cheeks and they kissed again, this one powerful and meaningful. The start of a real relationship. They walked back to the Institute, hand in hand, with silly love struck grins on their faces. When they got there, Isabelle's grin turned into a frown.

"You can't come in here anymore." She pouted, turning to look at Simon. He thought for a moment and said,

"Maybe I can. When Jace gave me some of his blood it let me walk in sunlight, maybe I can go in the Institute."

"What if it burns you?" Isabelle asked with a worried tone. "You could get hurt."

"It's worth a try." Simon said and reached for the handle on the door, and miraculously, it opened. Isabelle squealed in delight as she and Simon entered the Institute, and it didn't even hurt him. They stepped into the elevator and decided to look for everyone else. It was only around 2:30 and she wanted to see if Alec had talked to their parents yet about the demon attack.

"How do you feel?" Isabelle looked at Simon. "Are you still okay?"

"Yea, I'm fine, and really happy." Simon grinned. The elevator rattled to a stop and the doors opened. The pair turned down the hall and made their way into the library to see Alec, Magnus, Jace, and a very excited looking Clary.

"ISABELLE! SIMON!" she yelled, "Wait, SIMON? How are you even _here?_"

"I can walk in the Institute now." Simon said, sounding impossibly casual. "I think it's one of the effects from Jace's blood."

"That is so great, but guess what guys?" She replied, a huge grin on her face.

"What?" Isabelle said.

"We get to go to IDRIS! Isn't that exciting? I'm so happy! This time should be much more pleasant, and I didn't get a chance to draw anything while we were there last time. The Silent Brothers there are supposed to be able to completely cure Jace!" By the end of her rant she was bouncing up and down on her toes and she was out of breath from talking so much.

"Clary calm down." Jace said. "We need to pack because Mom and Dad want us there tomorrow. Clary still has to tell her parents and whatnot. We need to make sure she can go."

"Idris? I mean, that's great and all but, we just…" Isabelle trailed off and shot a sad look at Simon. They had just fixed their relationship, and now they were going to be pulled apart again. She saw Clary's eyes glance downward at her and Simon's hands and she said,

"Oh! You two finally got your relationship all figured out! It's about time. Alec, ask Robert and Maryse if Isabelle can bring Simon. Please? Besides, you're bringing Magnus." Clary finished and smiled in satisfaction, she leaned over and whispered in Simon's ear, "Did she ask you?" He blushed and mumbled "Kinda."

A/N Yea! Simon and Isabelle got together! This is sorta how I imagined it would work, let me know what you think. I think they'll get to Idris next chapter, I could of kept going but I really wanted to update because I'm going to be gone all weekend and I have three big tests next week so I probably won't have any time to write. So this chapter wasn't really that long but I promise I'll try hard to update sooner! REVIEW!

-Da Book Lady


	5. A Chance Encounter

A/N Hey! I'm back! This chapter picks up exactly where the last one left off, and its super sweet! I have a feeling you're going to love this chapter. And I lied. We probably won't be going to Idris until next chapter; this one is all fluff, but necessary fluff. I need a fluffy side to my plot, because it mainly contains action, not right now, but later. I need the fluff now so I can remember to put it in later because most of my story is going to be action or angst, not a lot of angst though because angst makes me depressed. Anyways… HOLY CRAP! (cue random arm flailing) I GOT ELEVEN REVIEWS! I LOVE YOU GUYS! I am so happy because not a single one of them was bad, and they really do motivate me to write more. Thanks a bunch to: twilightluvergurl, fangirl18, LaaruaParawhoreNightwine, sk8rgrl, ButtercupluvsJACE, Hawaiiangrl, and anonymous. You guys are awesome.

Disclaimer: I own the Mortal Instruments. And now scary people in black suits are filing lawsuits against me. Oh well, I tried. Guess I still don't own it, unless the fabulous Cassandra Clare decides to give it to me anytime soon.

#=#=#=#=#

"Oh! You two finally got your relationship all figured out! It's about time. Alec, ask Robert and Maryse if Isabelle can bring Simon. Please? Besides, you're bringing Magnus." Clary finished and smiled in satisfaction, she leaned over and whispered in Simon's ear, "Did she ask you?" He blushed and mumbled "Kinda."

(that was last chapter, this is where chapter five starts)

Clary smiled at Simon's blush and turned to face Alec, who had just gotten his parents reply.

"Yea, Simon can come." He said and Isabelle grinned madly.

"Alec, I would like to help you pack." Magnus said, gesturing toward the hall. "Your wardrobe needs fixing. It was Alec's turn to blush as he and Magnus got up and walked towards his room. Isabelle tugged on Simon's arm and soon Jace and Clary were the only ones left in the library. Jace shifted uncomfortably in his seat and turned to face Clary.

"I would love to spend the rest of the day with you to help you pack Clary, but I have something really important to do before we leave. Can I swing by your house tonight to see if you're ready?"

"Um, yea Jace, that's fine. Can I ask what this errand is for?" She replied, shrugging off his uneasiness.

"It's a surprise." He said and grinned. Jace got up from his seat and walked over to where Clary was sitting. He pressed a soft kiss into her forehead and put his hands on her shoulders from behind the chair.

"I love you." He whispered. As he left the room Clary called out, "I love you too!"

#=#=#=#=#

The whole way to the store Jace was smiling. He was about to make one huge, momentous decision that would change the rest of his life. He was buying an engagement ring for Clary. Sure it was early, really early, but he couldn't think of anyone else he wanted to spend the rest of his life with, and he was anxious to see if Clary felt the same way. When he found out that they were going to Idris he knew that he wanted to propose in Idris. He had to find the ring, tonight. Jace flipped open his phone and sent a quick text to Izzy:

_Hey, if you tell Clary I asked you this I swear on the Angel I will kill you, but what's Clary's ring size?_

She replied,

OMG Are you gonna propose? In IDRIS? I didn't know you could be so romantic… Anyway, she's a five. I won't tell her, I don't wanna ruin the surprise.

_Thanks Izz._

Jace grinned and stepped into the jewelry store in the mall, and was really surprised to see Luke, hovering over a case with engagement rings. How ironic. Jace silently made his way over to the spot where Luke was standing and tapped him on the shoulder.

"Hey Luke." Luke jumped and spun around as an utter look of astonishment crossed his face.

"Jace, wha- oh. You're proposing to Clary. You're proposing to Clary! Jace, that's great. You don't even have to be nervous, you're the only one she's ever wanted." Luke said, and grinned.

"I was going to ask for your permission, but I wanted to get the ring tonight, I was planning on proposing while we were in Idris, I was going to stop at your house tonight, to ask if Clary could come. Robert and Maryse say she needs to come to find out more about the demon thing we told you about. When I asked if Clary could come I was also going to ask if I was allowed to propose. I thought maybe you'd want me to wait until we were older. I guess I'm just nervous she'll want to wait. I mean, I totally respect that, I just, now seems like the right time. I don't know why. It's so weird that we're here at the same time, and we're buying rings for two very similar people, for the same reason. You're gonna propose to Jocelyn, right?" Luke smiled and stuffed his hands into his pockets.

"Yea. I am. I know what you mean about it just feeling like the right time. That's what I feel for Jocelyn. I wonder what they would think if they knew we ran into each other at the jewelry store."

"So which ones were you looking at?" Jace asked, now facing the display case. Luke pointed to two rings. The first one was a simple, thin silver band with a small cluster of three little diamonds set in the center, held back by a swirling piece of metal that reminded Jace of a rune. The second one was gold, and the band was thicker, a ring of tiny diamonds ran around the center of the whole band and the front had a square diamond set into it. They were both really pretty, and unique. Jace thought that even though he hadn't known Jocelyn long, they would suit her.

"Those are really pretty Luke, what one are you leaning towards?" Jace asked. Personally, he liked the silver one better. If he was looking at that one for Clary he would pick it because of how the design looks like a rune.

"I think I like the silver one. Jocelyn tends to like silver jewelry better anyway." Luke said, pointing at the ring. Jace smiled, Clary like silver jewelry too. She and her mom were really alike.

"I was just thinking that. Clary likes silver jewelry too. She and Jocelyn are so similar, it's scary." Jace and Luke smiled together and sighed. Jace was happy to have this time with Luke. He was so kind. Jace was happy for Clary and Jocelyn, they were lucky to have someone like Luke. Jace reached into his pocket and pulled out a piece of paper that had the rune for eternity scrawled on the back.

"Do you think the mundane at the checkout will have any questions if I ask to get this rune carved on the band? I would do it with my stele but the ring would be too small, and I wouldn't be able to trace it." He asked, presenting the paper to Luke.

"That's the rune for eternity isn't it? Clary will love that Jace. I don't think the mundane will question it at all, people get names and symbols carved on rings all the time." Luke replied. "What kind of ring to want to get for Clary?"

"Something simple." Jace said. "I want the rune on the front, so I was thinking a plain silver band. I want to show Clary how much I mean by this through the rune, not the glamour of the ring, because I think it would be more special that way." Luke looked at him thoughtfully and said

"You could get a ring that has a diamond with the jewel surround and have the main diamond taken out so there's still jewels surrounding the rune."

"That's a really great idea Luke. Thanks." Jace looked at the rings for a moment longer and saw the perfect one. Luke motioned for the worker lady to come over and get their rings for them. When they were at the counter and Luke had paid for his Jace asked about the diamond and the carving. The lady seemed to think nothing of the strange symbol and she told him that she would be able to get it done tonight if he could wait a half an hour. He smiled and sat down with Luke in one of the chairs by the counter. When the ring was finished Jace was breathless. The band was silver, and had tiny, delicate diamonds set into it. They surrounded the most perfect part of the ring, the eternity rune that was etched in gold. Jace smiled and tucked the velvet box into his pocket, already envisioning how he would propose. He wanted it to be perfect. Jace walked with Luke back to Clary's house to see how it was coming with her packing, and to talk with Luke and Jocelyn a little more. He wasn't sure what Jocelyn thought of him, but he really wanted to make things right with his hopefully, future mother in law. The walk home was quiet, but it was a happy silence. Jace was glad he ran into Luke at the jewelry store. He was really happy.

#=#=#=#=#

They walked into the house to find Clary and Jocelyn sitting in the living room with a drop cloth spread on the floor wearing paint splattered overalls and soft cotton t-shirts. Their hair was up in similar sloppy buns and they had paint smeared all over their fingers. One canvas was in front of them on an easel, facing away from Jace and Luke so they couldn't see what they were painting. Jace called out a hello and Clary ran over to him, wrapping her arms around him, effectively smearing paint all over his new leather jacket.

"Hi Clary. Umm… You got paint on me." He said, secretly grinning into her hair. He kind of liked the fact that Clary got paint on his coat. He didn't really want to wash it out.

"Hey." She giggled into his chest and hugged him tighter.

"Why the sudden ambush?" He murmured while kissing her forehead, not caring that her parents were right there.

"I missed you." She said and shrugged. Clary pulled away from his embrace and smiled at him. "Come see what me and my mom are painting." Clary tugged on his hand and pulled him across the room to the other side of the canvas. Jace gasped when he saw what it was. The scene before them was beautiful and so realistic it almost seemed like they were looking at the real thing. The painting was only half finished, but Jace could tell it was of the Accords Hall, one the night of the celebration last year. It looked like they had been working on it for a long time, and they were on the final parts. Jace could see the gleaming marble pillars and the soft glow of fireworks in the background. What made Jace most excited was that the focus of the painting on Clary's half was him and Clary, standing on the dais watching the fireworks, and on Jocelyn's half it was Jocelyn and Luke, dancing by the fountain. He saw how perfectly Clary had recreated the scene. Her clinging to Jace's arm, leaning her head against him, and Jace's arm tucked firmly, and protectively around her waist. The memory the picture brought back was happy and pleasant. Jace smiled and said to Clary

"I love it. You're such a great artist." This made Clary grin even wider. "Are you packed for Idris?" He asked.

"Yea, you wanna see what I have packed?"

"Sure." Jace replied as they walked down the hall to Clary's room. On the bed there were enough clothes to last her two whole weeks, along with her shadowhunting gear and her art supplies. Jace picked up her sketchbook out of curiosity and flipped it open. The first sketch was of Alec, Jace, and Isabelle, standing in defensive stances with their weapons pointed at some unknown enemy. The drawing was really good, and done in charcoal. The shading really emphasized the glow of their weapons. The next drawing was a half finished sketch of her and Simon, sitting in front of a pile of Naruto comics when they were younger. Simon still had his glasses, and they were laughing innocently, as if none of the events of the past year had happened. Jace flipped the page to the next picture and gasped. It was a full color sketch of him and Clary, having a picnic in a wide open field. In the picture Jace was on one knee, slipping a ring onto Clary's finger, who had tears streaming down her face. He was excited, she really thought about him proposing to her in the future. Who knew? There was a sharp intake of breath as Clary saw what he was looking at and she moved to snatch the book from his hands with wide eyes of terror.

"Gimme that!" She squealed, her voice rising and her cheeks flushing a bright red. Clary hastily shoved the sketchbook into her suitcase and looked across the room, at the window, the dresser, the door, anything but Jace.

"Why are you so embarrassed?" He asked, not able to find a reason for her embarrassment, "It's not like I don't think about it too." Oh God. Did he just say that? He didn't want to give her any ideas, the proposal was supposed to be a surprise. He promised himself he would do it in Idris, maybe he would take her on a picnic similar to the one in the picture.

"You do?" She asked, looking up at him. The embarrassment was gone, replaced by a look of happiness and relief.

"Well yea, it's a really big step in our future. We have to think about it sooner or later." Jace shrugged his shoulders and smiled nonchalantly. Something crashed into his back and he smiled as Clary hugged him from behind.

"I love you so much." She whispered, barely even loud enough for him to hear. Clary peppered light kisses along his collarbone, and then she sucked ever so lightly on his neck, trying hard not to leave a mark. It was a loving kiss, not heated with blind passion, but real love. Jace twisted around and put his arms around her waist, pulling her into his lap.

"Clary." He breathed, unsure as to why, sort of like he had done a year ago on the Accords Hall steps in Idris. Jace liked the sound of her name coming out of his mouth in that intimate whisper, it sounded so right to be saying. It was enchanting. "I love you Clary." He said and grinned as she rested her chin on his shoulder. He liked to be able to just hold her in his arms and make sure all of this was real, because sometimes things were so perfect it felt like a dream that he never wanted to wake up from. She sighed and her chest vibrated against his shoulder, and for some reason this excited him.

"Idris is going to be amazing Jace." She whispered. "Remember what I said last night, Angel, that seems so long ago. Remember how I said that it would be great if we could wake up in each other's arms every morning? We can do that in Idris. Even though the reason we're going there isn't so happy, I think it's going to be terrifically romantic. I'm just so happy right now." If it was possible, Jace's grin grew wider, and he felt like his face was going to break. He had smiled so often lately, surely it wasn't fair for him to be so happy. In this moment Jace knew he had no reason to be nervous about his proposal to Clary. She would, without a doubt, say yes.

"I can't wait." He murmured in response. Jace felt his eyelids drooping and he realized what a long day today had been, he had done so much today. No wonder he was tired. There was a soft knock on the half open door and it swung open all the way, and Jocelyn was standing in the doorway, smiling at them.

"Dinner's ready." She said and turned down the hall to the kitchen. This would be the second meal Jace ate here today, Jocelyn had made him and Clary lunch earlier today before he went to the jewelry store. Clary disentangled herself from him and grabbed his hand, pulling him to the kitchen.

#=#=#=#=#

Dinner was great. Jocelyn had made fancy ravioli and garlic bread with homemade spaghetti sauce. The conversation at the table consisted of Clary and Jocelyn discussing the finishing touches they needed to put on their painting, and Jace describing to Luke and Jocelyn what they were hoping to find out while in Idris. When dinner was over Jace offered to clean up the table and the dishes. When he got to the kitchen he joked,

"You know Ms. Fairchild, I'm glad you cook better than Izzy because I would really hate it if I always had to turn you down when I'm invited to dinner." This made everyone break into fits of hysterical laughter, and finally Jocelyn said,

"Why thank-you Jace. Although, I've never eaten anything Isabelle has cooked."

"Trust me mom." Clary said, "You really don't want to." Everyone laughed again and Clary smiled at how well Jocelyn was getting along with Jace. Usually she was hesitant towards him, but tonight she had no problems with him at all. Things were going great. When they were finished cleaning up dinner, Jace turned to Clary's parents and said,

"Well, I need to head back to the Institute, but I want to help Clary get all of her things into suitcases first."

"You don't have to leave if you don't want to Jace." Luke said.

"What?" Jace was confused.

"Jocelyn and I have decided to let you stay the night, and in the morning we can drive you to the Institute." Luke explained with a voice casual and trusting. Luke and Jocelyn trusted him with Clary. That was one of the best things he's ever heard, along with him and Clary not being siblings, and Clary saying that she didn't want to want anyone but him.

"You're sure?" He asked, trying not to sound cocky. He wasn't going to let his ego nor his hormones ruin tonight, they would just be sleeping.

"Yes, absolutely." Jocelyn said and shooed them down the hall saying "Go pack!" Jace and Clary found themselves alone, once again, in Clary's room. Because Jace was such a neat freak he had to organize Clary's suitcase for her, in a meticulously ordered fashion. He smirked devilishly when he found a lacy black bra that he had no idea Clary owned and immediately thought 'Isabelle'.

"Hopefully," He said while holding it up, "I will get to see you in this sometime soon," Clary saw what he was holding up and blushed furiously. Jace noticed that he was really good at making her blush. Clary thought that she should have never let Jace pack her things. She was embarrassed to even own such a thing and Jace was never meant to see it, ever.

"No!" Clary squealed and jumped at Jace. She attempted to get it back at swatted at his arm and shoulders, but he held it teasingly high over her head. "JACE!"

"Fine, fine, I'll give it back." Jace pouted and tucked the bra into her bag. Clary insisted upon packing the rest of her things and Jace watched her, secretly marveling at how much sexy underwear she had.

When Clary was finally done packing they both fell back on the bed together and sighed in exhaustion.

"Today was such a long day." Clary mumbled into Jace's side while resting her head on his chest. "Hold on a sec." She said and jumped up. Clary ran over to her dresser and rooted around in the top drawer until she came up with a loose fitting white cami and some gray silk soffee shorts.

"Close your eyes." She commanded Jace who, surprisingly, listened to her without complaint, or a sarcastic remark. Clary checked one last time to make sure he wasn't peeking and she ducked out of her top, pulling her comfortable summer pajamas on. "You can look now." She said on her way back over to the bed. Jace opened his eyes and tugged his t-shirt over his head. He reached his arms out and pulled her against him. Their bodies fit together perfectly, yet another piece of proof that they were made for each other. He sneakily skimmed his fingers over her thighs when he pulled the thin blanket up around them. Jace planted soft kisses on her neck and hair before whispering,

"Goodnight my love."

A/N Yea! Chapter Five! Did you like having Jace and Luke run into each other at the jewelry store? I thought that was adorable. I'm so sorry I lied about going to Idris this chapter, but I promise we'll get there next chapter. I feel like a parent on vacation and my kids are asking 'Are we there yet?' Haha. I am planning on having a really unexpected, or, I hope it's unexpected, twist to the plot soon. I'm also thinking about making this a bit AR, I kind of want to do something with Max, and I really don't want him to be dead in this fic. My friend and I actually cried when he died. We get way to emotional over our books. So! Here are the people I want to be cast for the City of Bones movie!

Jace: Alex Pettyfer DUR!

Simon: Ricky Ullman or Kristopher Turner

Jocelyn: Famke Janssen

Isabelle: Ashley Greene

Valentine: Alexander Scarsgard

Maryse: Courtney Cox

And… I would of preferred Stacey Farber or Molly Quinn for Clary but Lily Collins will work too.

And… I know he's not an actor, but wouldn't it be super awesome if Bill Kaulitz from Tokio Hotel (I love that band) was Magnus?

Sooo… keep being awesome and REVIEW!


	6. Sorry! You probably hate me

A/N OMG AHHHH I am terrible! I know! I have my reasons for not updating.

I have had a terribly stressful time at school these past few weeks. We have a huge Social Studies Project and a really big poetry assignment for Language. For some reason all my teachers have been giving boatloads of homework, and there have been tests and quizzes and I'm just so stressed right now.

Flute. I had a solo in our concert last night, and I'm playing a different solo at a contest in a couple weeks so I have flute lessons. I also have to practice for around a half an hour every day. Time consuming.

Volleyball. I have practice four times a week for three hours. We also had a overnighter tournament this weekend so I wasn't able to update.

I really hate this story. I know, I know. I am sooo sorry and if you like it then that's too bad. I tried to write but when I took them to Idris I failed at every scene with action. I just can't. I really like fluffy stories, which is why I'm starting a new fic. It's gonna be about them set in a feudalist kingdom, and Clary is an orphan who lives with a band of thieves. When she meets the prince, Jace, by accident she falls in love with him, and he thinks he loves her back. The story won't be a lot of action, just fluff, and angst. Please try and read that one. I kind of just _can't _write this one anymore. I have no ideas for it. I am going to try to finish the first chapter to my new one, and post it. I really hate doing this to you guys, you were awesome.

I really love all the people who reviewed this story, but I think it's coming to an early close. You can hate on me all you want, but I can't write this anymore. So if you aren't too mad, read my new one. I think I'm gonna call it Long Live.

Sorry!


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